Manufacturing Engineering

Faculty

J. Liang, Professor, Director, Materials & Manufacturing Engineering; Ph.D., Brown University. Nanostructured materials, material processing, material characterization.
C. A. Brown, Professor, Director, Surface Metrology Laboratory; Ph.D., University of Vermont. Surface metrology, multi-scale geometric analyses, axiomatic design, sports engineering, and manufacturing process.
T.L. Christiansen, Professor, Technical Director, Center for Heat Treating Excellence (CHTE); Ph.D., The Technical University of Denmark. Thermochemical surface treatment; surface engineering; Heat treatment; Gas-metal interactions; Physical metallurgy; Metal additive manufacturing; Microstructure optimization for improved materials performance. 
M. S. Fofana, Associate Professor; Ph.D., University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Canada. Nonlinear delay dynamical systems, stochastic bifurcations, regenerative chatter, numerically controlled CAD/ CAM machining.
C. Furlong, Professor; Ph.D., Worcester Polytechnic Institute. MEMS and MOEMS, nanotechnology, mechatronics, laser applications, holography, computer modeling of dynamic systems.
R. W. Hyers, George I. Alden Professor and Department Head; Ph.D. MIT 1998.  High-temperature materials and materials processing, including both modeling and experiments.  Properties of liquids and solids at high temperature.  Computer-aided experiments, including on the International Space Station.
S. A. Johnson, Professor; Ph.D., Cornell University. Lean process design, enterprise engineering, process analysis and modeling, reverse logistics.
D. A. Lados, Milton Prince Higgins II Professor; Director, Integrative Materials Design Center (iMdc); Ph.D., Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 2004; Fatigue, fatigue crack growth, and fracture of metallic materials – life predictions, computational modeling and ICME, materials/process design and optimization for aerospace, automotive, marine, and military applications.
M. M. Makhlouf, Professor; Ph.D., Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Solidification of Metals, the application of heat, mass and momentum transfer to modeling and solving engineering materials problems, and processing of ceramic materials.
B. Mishra, Kenneth G. Merriam Professor, Metal Processing Institute; Ph.D., University of Minnesota. Physico-chemical processing of materials; Corrosion science and engineering; Materials Processing, Surface Engineering, Resource Recovery & Recycling, Critical materials extraction; Iron and steelmaking; Alloy development; Thin film coatings.
D. Strong, Professor of Management and Department Head; Ph.D., Carnegie-Mellon University; Director, Management Information Systems (MIS) Program; MIS and work flows, data integration and role changes; MIS quality issues, data and information quality.
W. Towner, Associate Teaching Professor; Ph.D., Worcester Polytechnic Institute; operations management, lean manufacturing, six-sigma.
B. Tulu, Associate Professor of Management; Ph.D., Claremont Graduate University. Medical informatics, information security, telemedicine, personal health records, systems analysis and design.
Y. Wang, Professor of Mechanical Engineering; Ph.D., University of Windsor (Canada). Lithium ion battery, fuel cell, corrosion and electrochemistry, flow battery.

Faculty Research Interests

Current research areas include additive manufacturing, tolerance analysis, CAD/CAM, production systems analysis, machining, fixturing, delayed dynamical systems, nonlinear chatter, surface metrology, fractal analysis, surface functionality, metals processing and manufacturing management, axiomatic design, and abrasive processes, electronic medical records, lean in health care and health dynamics.

Programs of Study

The Manufacturing Engineering (MFE) Program offers two graduate degrees: the master of science and the doctor of philosophy. Full- and part-time study is available.

The graduate program in manufacturing engineering provide opportunities for students to study current manufacturing techniques while allowing each student the flexibility to customize their educational program. Course material and research activities often draw from the traditional fields of computer science, controls engineering, electrical and computer engineering, environmental engineering, industrial engineering, materials science and engineering, mechanical engineering, and management. The program’s intention is to build a solid and broad foundation in manufacturing theories and practices, and allow for further concentrated study in a selected specialty.

The Manufacturing Engineering Program also offers a B.S./M.S. program for currently enrolled WPI undergraduates. There is no undergraduate B.S. degree option in Manufacturing Engineering; the B.S. portion of this combined degree may be in any other discipline.

Admission Requirements

Candidates for admission must meet WPI’s requirements and should have a bachelor’s degree in science, engineering, or management, preferably in such fields as computer science/engineering, electrical/ control engineering, industrial engineering, environmental engineering, manufacturing engineering, materials science and engineering, mechanical engineering, or management. Students with other backgrounds will be considered based on their interest, formal education and experience in manufacturing.

For admission in to BS/MS program, Students should apply during their junior or senior year. In addition to general college requirements, all courses taken for graduate credit must result in a GPA of 3.0 or higher. A grade of B or better is required for any course to be counted toward both degrees. Waiver of any of these requirements must be approved by the Manufacturing Engineering Graduate Committee, which will exercise its discretion in handling any extenuating circumstances or problems.

MFE Seminar

Seminar speakers include WPI faculty and students as well as manufacturing experts and scholars from around the world. Registration for, attendance at and participation in the seminar course, MFE 500, is required for full-time students. The seminar series provides a common forum for all students to discuss current issues in manufacturing engineering.

Research Facilities and Laboratories

The CAM Laboratory

The CAM Lab facilitates the use of digital technologies to model, analyze, and control the manufacturing processes and systems. Besides the computers available for students, several application software packages have been used for CAD, solid modeling, kinematic analysis, FEA, modeling and simulation of machining and other materials processing, as well as new additive manufacturing processes. The lab has been developing techniques and systems for process (machining and heat treatment) modeling and simulation, production planning, tolerance analysis, fixture design, and lean manufacturing.

Manufacturing Interpreting Robotics Analysis Delay Dynamical Systems Laboratory (MIRAD)

The MIRAD laboratory focuses on developing computation, technology and engineering to better improve emergency medical services, ambulance vehicles, dialysis treatment, medical and public health systems, aircraft breaking systems, systems engineering mechanics and automated manufacturing systems design. Our innovative computerized modelling techniques, simulations, experiments and computer-controlled data acquisition to understand vibrations and quantify uncertainty enable us to estimate optimal performance reliance of products, processes and systems in sustained ways. The partners of MIRAD Laboratory include but not limited to industry, academia, hospitals, EMS departments, research institutions and universities.

Manufacturing Laboratories

The manufacturing laboratories are spread out in six main areas in two buildings and house WPI’s Haas Technical Education Center as well as WPI’s Robotics Resource Laboratory, WPI’s Collablab, and several student work spaces. In the Higgins Laboratories the facilities are located in rooms 004, 005, and 006. In the Washburn Shops the facilities are located in rooms 105, 107, and 108. The facilities are operated by an operations manager, and two lab machinists who are assisted by up to 20 undergraduate peer learning assistants (PLAs). Over 1000 WPI students use the facilities each year completing hundreds of individual and group projects. In a typical 7 week term we record over 4000 instances of use in the facilities which are available for student use 24 hours per day 365 days per year.

The Haas Technical Education Center was established with a $400,000 award from the Fleet Asset Management, trustee of the Elizabeth A. Lufkin Trust and Haas Automation, Oxnard, California, and represented in New England by Trident Machine tools, who entrusted WPI with over a quarter million dollars in new machine tools, software and training.

The center is used for both undergraduate teaching and graduate research. The eleven CNC machine tools are used in ME 1800, ME 3820, and ES 3323, as well as other courses. The machine tools facilitate the realization, i.e. fabrication, of parts that students have designed on computers. The machine tools are important for supporting WPI’s project based-education. The machine tools are also be used in manufacturing engineering research, as well as to produce apparatus to support research efforts in other fields.

Higgins Machine Shop and Project Laboratory

The machine shop in the Higgins Labs consists of three adjacent areas: the Machine Shop (HL004, 600 sq. ft.), the Project Laboratory (HL005, 1600 sq. ft.), and the SAE Project Lab (HL006, 300 sq. ft.). The Machine Shop contains 2 CNC Machine tools (a Haas Tool Room min and a Haas Tool Room Lathe), as well as a surface grinder, 2 DoAll Mills and a DoAll engine lathe as well as a drill press, 2 band saws and assorted hand tools A machinist manages and supports the machine shop and project activities with the assistance of undergraduate PLAs. The Project Laboratory is used primarily for the conduct of capstone design projects requiring a large work and assembly area, such as the SAE Formula Race Car and other SAE projects. Typically, 12 –15 students are involved with the projects in this laboratory throughout the academic year.

In addition to providing space for capstone design projects the project lab also provides space to one of WPI’s US First Robotics teams and supports the Robotics Resource Center, as well as being the home of WPI’s CollabLab. The CollabLab is a student organization that promotes “maker” culture and collaboration at WPI.

Robotics Laboratory

The Robotics Laboratory, a 1,915 sq. ft. facility, is located on the first floor of the Washburn Building room 108 is equipped with a variety of industrial robots, machine tools and other equipment. The industrial robots, for which the Robotics Laboratory is named, are run primarily during the laboratory sessions of the Industrial Robotics course (ME 4815), and to a lesser extent by undergraduate project groups and graduate researchers. The industrial robots in the laboratory include: one Fanuc LR Mate 200iB, and one Fanuc M-710iC. The Robotics lab houses four of the five entrusted machine tools that are part of WPI’s Haas Technical Education Center. The Mill Drill Center (MDC) is a permanent entrustment and has duel pallets so a part can be loaded while the machine is cutting. This machine is frequently used in conjunction with the Fanuc LR Mate. The Haas ST30-Y fully automated 4 axis machining center with an automatic bar feeder. Used in conjunction with the Fanuc ----- and the MDC students can create a fully automated production cell. Both the Haas VM2 and VF4-SS also located in the Robotics Lab are equipped with full 5 axis control systems. We have a Haas fifth axis fixturing system that can be mounted in either machine tool.

CNC Teaching Laboratory

The CNC teaching laboratory is located in the Washburn Shops Room 107 and covers 3,140 sq. ft. The mission of the CNC labs is to support the mission of WPI, by creating, discovering, and conveying knowledge at the frontiers of inquiry in CNC machining and education, as well as linking that new knowledge to applications; help students achieve self-sufficiency in the use of CNC tools and technologies, so they can conceive, design, and create their own CNC machined parts for their projects.

The vision of the CNC labs is to be the premier laboratory for CNC engineering education and research (applied and fundamental) in the world.

In the teaching laboratory we have one Universal Laser Systems VLS60 Laser Cutter, one Makerbot Replicator 2X, 3 Haas MiniMills and 2 Haas SL10s, 3 band saws, two drill presses, a sheet metal shear and bending break as well as assorted hand tools. Attached to each of the MiniMills and SL10s are computer workstations equipped with all of the design and programming software supported on campus and with our instructional tools that have been developed to allow students to train each other.

In addition to the computers located at each of the CNC machine tools in the CNC teaching laboratory and robotics laboratories the facility has two computer classroom spaces one located in 107 with the other in 105. Each of the classroom spaces can be configured to contain between 8 and 12 computer workstations. Each space also has, a conference table, whiteboards, and a ceiling mounted projector that each computer in the space can send its signal to when the spaces are used for project group meetings.

Students working on any of the computer workstations in the facilities have access to the design software packages supported on campus as well as our training materials and several Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) software packages including Esprit, MasterCam, and SurfCam.

Metal Additive Manufacturing Lab

At metal additive manufacturing lab, we advance the state-of-the-art in additive manufacturing by working at the intersection of mechanical engineering, materials science, and manufacturing. We specifically use laser powder bed fusion, electron beam powder bed fusion, and wire arc additive manufacturing processes on structural materials such as titanium, nickel, aluminum-based alloys and steels. Our goal is to develop and utilize process-structure-property relations for different processes and materials to achieve desired microstructure and properties. Our lab has an SLM 125 laser powder bed fusion equipment that is suitable for parameter development using small quantities of powders which is especially advantageous for materials development activities. This machine is also equipped with in-situ monitoring capabilities such as melt pool monitoring and laser power monitoring. We also leverage collaborations with other universities, national labs, and companies for access to equipment and complementary skills to achieve our goals.

Metal Processing Institute (MPI)

The Metal Processing Institute (MPI) is an industry-university alliance. Its mission is to design and carry out research projects identified in collaboration with MPI’s industrial partners in the field of near and net shape manufacturing. MPI develops knowledge that will help enhance the productivity and competitiveness of the metal processing industry and develops the industry’s human resource base through the education of WPI students. Over 90 corporate partners participate in the Institute, and their support helps fund fundamental and applied research that addresses technological barriers facing the industry. MPI is one of WPI’s two Institutes with a legacy based on Theory and Practice. MPI houses three centers: the Advanced Casting Research Center (ACRC); the Center for Heat Treating Excellence (CHTE); and the Center for Resource Recovery and Recycling (CR3). The latter is a multi-university center with CSM and KU Leuven.

Surface Metrology Laboratory

WPI’s Surface Metrology Lab is one of just a few academic labs in the world that focuses on measurement and analysis of surface topographies, or roughness. Through the generosity of the respective companies the lab has the use of an Olympus LEXT OLS4100 laser scanning confocal microscope, a Solarius SolarScan white light microscope and a Mahr-Federal MarSurf GD25 stylus profiler for measuring topographies, as well as Mountains Map (DigitalSurf), Modal Filter, and Sfrax, software for analysis. We study how topographies are influenced by processing and influence the performance of surfaces. One task it to find ways to discriminate surfaces that were processed differently, or that perform differently, based on topographic measurement and analysis. Another task is to find functional correlations between topographies and their processing or their performance. The lab has pioneered the development and application of several kinds of multi-scale analyses including geometric and fractal analyses for discrimination and correlation. The lab serves industry and collaborates with engineers and scientists from a variety of disciplines around the world.

Materials and Processes Laboratory

The Materials and Processes Laboratory provides experimental support for a variety of combined programs in modeling and experimentation on materials.  This is a new lab in AY 2023-2024.  Capabilities presently under construction include a high-temperature atmosphere furnace, a laser hearth with vacuum and atmosphere capabilities, and various advanced diagnostics.  Present experimental work focuses on manufacturing, extractive metallurgy, and recycling, in addition to fundamental work on high-temperature materials and processes.